For example, in beverage bottling lines for returnable bottles, special devices may be provided in an area upstream from a bottle unpacking machine to, if necessary, cause the bottle crates arriving from a depalletizing machine to be rotated about their vertical axis into the alignment position required for the unpacking machine. In the case of bottle crates having a symmetrical design of the compartments, i.e., a symmetrical arrangement of the bottles in the crate, as a rule one need only ensure that the bottle crates are supplied to the unpacking machine with them all aligned with their longitudinal extent either across or along the direction of conveyance. If the packing head of the unpacking machine is designed so that, for example, only bottles from bottle crates arriving from the depalletizing machine in the longitudinal position, said crates being conveyed in the transverse position, can be removed are rotated by 90 degrees with respect to their vertical axis into the required transverse position, said rotation being accomplished by an integrated crate rotating device which can be driven into the conveyance position.
In addition, such a device for aligning parcel goods may also be accommodated in a packaging line in which the items to be packaged are stacked on pallets with a certain pattern of positions. In palleting articles, at least the longitudinal and/or transverse alignment of the parcel goods must be taken into account, which is why a rotation by at least 90 degrees is necessary. In many application cases, however, the alignment of certain features of the parcel goods in certain directions is important, e.g., it is often necessary to align the labeling on the parcel goods so that it faces outward in the pallet stack and is legible. Thus, for example, a rotation by 180 or 270 degrees is necessary, or to achieve shorter angles of rotation, a rotation by −90 degrees may also be necessary. If the incoming parcel goods are not already aligned, continuous rotation to achieve the correct alignment may also be necessary.